From one-way cheering to a participatory culture—it feels like the artist and fans are completing the show together!
Cheering at concert venues is no longer just about simple shouting. From slogan events and card sections to sing-alongs and video screenings, various events planned and prepared by fans have become an integral part of the performance. The cheering culture is expanding, allowing artists on stage and fans in the audience to breathe as one and create a perfect scene together.
The most representative method is the slogan event. Fans raise pre-prepared slogans simultaneously, usually timed with the encore after the main show ends. Unfolding as the performance reaches its climax, these events deliver direct support and love to the artist while heightening the emotional atmosphere. Slogans also serve as a way to create lasting memories during photo times where artists and fans take pictures together.
This trend is widely used in both fan meetings and solo concerts. At Stray Kids’ sixth fan meeting held at Inspire Arena from March 28 to April 5, the venue was filled with slogans featuring phrases such as “Every moment of us to be filled with love,” “I’ll always hold that hand, I’ll just stay by your side like now,” and “Let’s dream of tomorrow, shining like starlight wherever we are.” These messages conveyed the fans’ sincerity and made the atmosphere of the performance even warmer.
EXO’s sixth solo concert, held at KSPO DOME in Songpa-gu, Seoul, from April 10 to 12, was also filled with slogan events. Phrases reflecting the fans’ hearts, such as “Our moment where even waiting was love,” “Thank you for being my home where I can always return,” and “Our love is not a moment but eternity, let’s love for a long time,” colored the seats and added deeper meaning to the show.
Card sections are another representative form of fan events. Typically, audience members on the second and third floors hold up different colored papers at a specific timing to complete a single phrase. Since thousands of spectators must move simultaneously to complete the image, prior guidance and cooperation are essential.
Recently, card sections have evolved even further. While single-sided cards that are flipped once were the norm, double-sided card sections have emerged, allowing for longer phrases and more complex messages. During THE BOYZ’s solo concert held at KSPO DOME from April 24 to 26, double-sided card sections completed the phrases “Deobi will protect THE BOYZ” and “Let’s meet here again,” delivering the fans’ sincerity more dynamically.
Sing-alongs are a relatively old cheering method, but they have become more sophisticated recently. When calling for an encore after the main show, fans go beyond simply chanting names and sing a pre-selected song together to call the artist back to the stage. While these were often done without backing tracks in the past, agencies now frequently provide MR (music recorded) in coordination with fans, transforming it into a form where fans create a complete stage.
Events utilizing digital elements, such as videos, are also noticeably increasing. Fan-made videos are screened during the time artists and fans communicate after the encore. Content created from fan-shot videos or handwritten letters serves as a touching finale to the performance.
While methods vary by performance, they all share the commonality of fans participating directly to create a scene. This culture evolved from one-way cheering centered on lightsticks and chants. In the early days, it was limited to showing a sense of belonging using balloons of the same color or official cheering tools, but now the focus is more on delivering messages.
The development of social media has played a huge role in accelerating this trend. Fans share the event planning process through online communities and X (Twitter) to recruit participants and exchange opinions. Slogan phrases and the selection of sing-along songs are often decided through voting and discussion. This process reinforces the perception that it is a “performance created together by fans,” going beyond simple cheering.
A woman in her 20s, referred to as A, who recently attended a concert, told The Fact, “When we sang together during the encore instead of just shouting names, it felt strongly like the artist and fans were completing the performance together. I think participating like this makes me more immersed in the show than just watching.”
